11 of the world’s best new skyscrapers (11 HQ Photos)

ABSOLUTE WORLD TOWERS — This year’s winner, Canada’s Absolute World Tower 1 & 2 are a part of a residential tower complex. Due to their curved shape and the fact that no floor appears the same, the two towers were nicknamed “Marilyn Monroe.”

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DUMANKAYA IKON —Istanbul, Turkey’s Dumankaya IKON is an apartment building and shopping center. It’s actually three interconnected towers that are joined on the 12th, 22nd, and 32nd floors.

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RENAISSANCE BARCELONA FIRA HOTEL — The Renaissance Barcelona Fira Hotel has a dazzling white façade except on the North side, which is black. The Barcelona hotel also has a vertical garden inside with over 300 palm trees.

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AL BAHR TOWERS — Abu Dhabi’s Al Bahr Towers has photovoltaic panels that react to sunlight. As the sun moves, 2,000 umbrellas open and close to reduce interior thermal energy by 50 percent.

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UNICREDIT TOWER — The headquarters of UniCredit Bank, the UniCredit Tower is Italy’s new tallest building. It can be seen from six miles away, and has LED lights that allow it to change color.

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BURJ QATAR — The 46-story Burj Qatar in Doha, Qatar is topped by a spire that acts as a lightning conductor. The facade is made of multi-layered patterns designed to look like ancient Islamic screens to shade the building from the sun.

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VARYAP MERIDIAN — Istanbul’s new Varyap Meridian has 1,500 apartments, a five-star hotel, and office space. The outside of the buildings are terracotta-colored near the ground, and transition into blue glass at the top.

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HOUSE ON MOSFILMOVSKAYA 1 — At nearly 700 feet tall, the House on Mosfilmovskaya 1 is one of the ten tallest buildings in Russia. It has slanting, exposed-concrete columns at its base, and connects to its 430-foot-tall sister tower.

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THE BOW — Called The Bow because of its gorgeous views of the Bow River, this 770-foot-tall skyscraper is the third-tallest in Canada. It’s also 30 percent lighter than other buildings of its size thanks to the architects’ innovative use of steel and glass.

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Pearl River Tower in Guangzhou, China is one of the world’s most energy-efficient skyscrapers. It uses wind energy and solar technology, and is the tallest skyscraper on this list at over 1,000 feet tall.

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ZHENGZHOU GREENLAND PLAZA — Located in Zhengzhou, China, the Zhengzhou Greenland Plaza houses office space and a 435-room hotel. The tower includes a mirror at the top that reflects sunlight down into the hotel’s atrium.